How Life Imitates the World Series (The Penguin sports library) [Paperback]

Thomas Boswell (Author)

Book Description

Series: The Penguin sports library | Publication Date: March 31, 1983

Great baseball story

Product Details

• Paperback: 30 pages
• Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics) (March 31, 1983)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140064699
• ISBN-13: 978-0140064698
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.1 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,220,544 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Superb, Revealing Baseball Narrative, August 1, 2007

By 

K.A.Goldberg (Chicago) - See all my reviews

This review is from: How Life Imitates the World Series (The Penguin sports library) (Paperback)

This is the first of several superb baseball narratives by Tom Boswell of the Washington Post. Moving around the major leagues, Boswell speaks with players, coaches, scouts, executives, etc. Among the stars he interviews are Reggie Jackson, Tommy John, Rod Carew, and others, and readers come away learning something every time. The book is a bit dated and Boswell doesn't spread his time equally between every team. Still, this is a remarkably readable and informative book for baseball fans. Readers should also see his later books (WHY TIME BEGINS ON OPENING DAY, HEART OF THE ORDER) as well as the similar efforts by Roger Angell.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Inexhaustibly interesting and fun..., September 13, 2003

By 

Laurel Jacobs "MysticCaribou" (Chicago) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: How Life Imitates the World Series (The Penguin sports library) (Paperback)

Baseball rewards attention like no other sport, and no baseball writer today is more attentive - or funnier or more loving - than Thomas Boswell.
In this collection of already classic pieces he brings to life such superstars as Reggie Jackson, Pete Rose, Tommy John and Rod Carew; he muses on the art of the spitball, the Big Bang Theory of run scoring, and Earl Weaver and the Baltimore Orioles' winning ways; and he evokes the texture of baseball from the sandlots to the minors to Cuba to the majors.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An old-school baseball book, October 22, 2010

By 

Craig Wood (Menlo Park, CA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: How Life Imitates the World Series (The Penguin sports library) (Paperback)

"How Life Imitates the World Series" is a collection of 34 baseball essays. Each of the essays explores some aspect of our national pastime -- a team, a player, a classic game or series. It was a fun book to read in 2010. The stories were published in 1982, so most of the commentary is a few decades old. It's obvious that the game has evolved a lot since the early '80s, but its essence remains the same.

It's clear that Boswell has a keen knowledge of the game, and ample talents to convey that knowledge through his writing. As a journalist, he was interacting with players very closely and he certainly got to know some of them well. I thought the best essays are those about the mercurial superstars of the day: Reggie Jackson, Pete Rose and Earl Weaver, among others. Boswell is careful not to vilify anyone, nor to throw them too many bouquets. It comes across as reasonably well balanced, and quite interesting if you've followed the game for a number of years.

I suspect that "How Life Imitates the World Series" would be a tedious read for people who aren't big fans of the game. But for those who follow baseball closely, and who have done so for a long time, it's an enjoyable book to read any time of year.